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Louisiana has surpassed Mississippi as the most obese state in the union.

A recent national survey shows that although obesity levels have been about the same for years now, the rate of obese adults also grew more quickly in Louisiana than in Mississippi. In the 2010 survey by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Louisiana weighed in at 31 percent, well below Mississippi's 34 percent. In two years, the percentage has increased nearly 4 percentage points.

Dr. Chris Hayes, a family practice physician at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette's Student Health Services, said ...